Ferrari poised to stop '09 development

13 Jul 2009 15:46

Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali says the team is preparing to stop development on its 2009 car and pour all its efforts into ensuring it is a title contender from the outset in 2010.

Felipe Massa's fourth and third places in the last two races - results achieved despite middling grid positions - have shown that Ferrari is regaining respectability after its abject start to the year.But with the team acknowledging that this season's car will probably never be a match for Brawn or Red Bull, Domenicali said the focus was about towards its new contender."It will be very soon," he replied when asked if a change in emphasis was on the cards. "We have already started some work on the new project, but in the next couple of weeks we will basically shift to the new project in order to make sure we do not lose any time because we know that next season will be crucial. "We want really definitely to start with a different pace compared to this year. "So it is a matter of days and weeks."Domenicali said he was satisfied with how Ferrari had recovered ground in recent weeks, but suspects its position at the forefront of the 'best of the rest' pack behind Brawn and Red Bull would soon come under threat."I am positive and happy with the result today," he said."But we need to keep our feet on the ground because the others are not sleeping, if you look at what we have seen this weekend with Renault, McLaren and Force India."He also admitted that the political rows that rocked Formula 1 this year - which saw Ferrari at the forefront of FOTA's campaign - had been something of a distraction."To be honest with you, I would have preferred to be more balanced for the management of the team," he said when asked if he had been able to maintain a good balance between politics and racing."But in this role we have to consider that it was a very critical moment for F1 and we have to ensure that we are doing our job."I feel a responsibility also being the principal of Ferrari with all that Ferrari means for Formula 1."